Pain is a common symptom in patients with cancer. Many patients experience pain that interferes with daily life despite the availability of analgesics to control pain. This study examined the relationships among pain intensity, pain interference, and analgesics prescribed in hospitalized patients with cancer. A total of 139 patients (mean age 59 years; 50% men) who reported pain during their hospitalization were included. Patients had a variety of cancer diagnoses; 48% had metastatic disease. Patients were interviewed an average 5 days after admission using the Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form (BPI-SF). This instrument includes four items on pain intensity (worst, least, and average pain in past 24 hours and pain now), pain interference items (ability to walk, mood, sleep, relations with others, and enjoyment in life), and one item estimating the percent of relief obtained from pain control therapies. A total interference score was computed, which was internally consistent in this sample (( = .88). All pain intensity and interference scores were reported on 11-point scales, with higher scores reflecting higher pain and interference. Analgesics prescribed were obtained from the patient's record. Strength of analgesic prescribed was compared to level of worst pain reported using the Pain Management Index (PMI). PMI scores were then collapsed to reflect adequate and inadequate analgesic prescriptions for worst pain reported. Patients reported a wide range of worst (M=6.7; S.D.=3.3), least (M=2.2; S.D.=2.3), and average (M=4.4; S.D.=2.7) pain over the past 24 hours. Patients reported an average of 69% (S.D.=27.5) pain relief. Seventy-one percent of patients had adequate analgesics prescribed for their level of pain. The relationship between pain intensity and total interference was strong (r = .63; p

Repository Posting Date:

27-Oct-2011

Date of Publication:

27-Oct-2011

Conference Host:

Southern Nursing Research Society

Note:

This is an abstract-only submission. If the author has submitted a full-text item based on this abstract, you may find it by browsing the Virginia Henderson Global Nursing e-Repository by author. If author contact information is available in this abstract, please feel free to contact him or her with your queries regarding this submission. Alternatively, please contact the conference host, journal, or publisher (according to the circumstance) for further details regarding this item. If a citation is listed in this record, the item has been published and is available via open-access avenues or a journal/database subscription. Contact your library for assistance in obtaining the as-published article.

Pain is a common symptom in patients with cancer. Many patients experience pain that interferes with daily life despite the availability of analgesics to control pain. This study examined the relationships among pain intensity, pain interference, and analgesics prescribed in hospitalized patients with cancer. A total of 139 patients (mean age 59 years; 50% men) who reported pain during their hospitalization were included. Patients had a variety of cancer diagnoses; 48% had metastatic disease. Patients were interviewed an average 5 days after admission using the Brief Pain Inventory-Short Form (BPI-SF). This instrument includes four items on pain intensity (worst, least, and average pain in past 24 hours and pain now), pain interference items (ability to walk, mood, sleep, relations with others, and enjoyment in life), and one item estimating the percent of relief obtained from pain control therapies. A total interference score was computed, which was internally consistent in this sample (( = .88). All pain intensity and interference scores were reported on 11-point scales, with higher scores reflecting higher pain and interference. Analgesics prescribed were obtained from the patient's record. Strength of analgesic prescribed was compared to level of worst pain reported using the Pain Management Index (PMI). PMI scores were then collapsed to reflect adequate and inadequate analgesic prescriptions for worst pain reported. Patients reported a wide range of worst (M=6.7; S.D.=3.3), least (M=2.2; S.D.=2.3), and average (M=4.4; S.D.=2.7) pain over the past 24 hours. Patients reported an average of 69% (S.D.=27.5) pain relief. Seventy-one percent of patients had adequate analgesics prescribed for their level of pain. The relationship between pain intensity and total interference was strong (r = .63; p<.001), indicating higher intensity is associated with greater interference. Higher pain intensity also was associated with inadequate analgesics prescribed (r=.40, p<.001) and lower levels of pain relief reported (r=-.26, p<01). No significant relationships were found among pain interference, analgesics prescribed, or relief reported. A significant difference (F (df 1,133)=43.8; p<.001) was found for interference between patients reporting mild (1 moderate (5-6), and severe (7-10) pain, which was not altered when analgesics prescribed or relief reported were entered as covariates. These findings are consistent with previous research, and suggest that pain does interfere with activities of daily life. Analgesics prescribed during hospitalization do not substantially alter this relationship.

en_GB

dc.date.available

2011-10-27T14:36:08Z

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dc.date.issued

2011-10-27

en_GB

dc.date.accessioned

2011-10-27T14:36:08Z

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dc.conference.host

Southern Nursing Research Society

en_US

dc.description.note

This is an abstract-only submission. If the author has submitted a full-text item based on this abstract, you may find it by browsing the Virginia Henderson Global Nursing e-Repository by author. If author contact information is available in this abstract, please feel free to contact him or her with your queries regarding this submission. Alternatively, please contact the conference host, journal, or publisher (according to the circumstance) for further details regarding this item. If a citation is listed in this record, the item has been published and is available via open-access avenues or a journal/database subscription. Contact your library for assistance in obtaining the as-published article.

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